Heart of a Samurai: Origins
by HypnoticMelody
Summary: -PREQUEL TO HEART OF A SAMURAI- How did the Samurai Rangers get their start? What was it like meeting their teammates for the first time? Why did they hold off on calling for the Purple Ranger? How does Jayden react to the sudden change? -TWO SHOT-
1. Part I

**Heart of a Samurai: Origins**

**Summary-How did the Samurai Rangers get their start? What was it like meeting their teammates for the first time? Why did they hold off on calling for the Purple Ranger? How does Jayden react to the sudden change?**

***NOTE: To understand my OC in this story, and her back story, go read my other fanfic _One of the Guys_. You don't necessarily have to, but it would help. This story has some spoilers for my other fanfic _One of the Guys_ as well.***

* * *

**Part I**

* * *

"The thing about packing that I hate so much is that you have to dig in those places you don't ever look in to see if you left anything of value," 18 (almost 19) year old Melody Porter groaned as she pulled a long strip of tape over two flaps of a cardboard box that refused to sit closed. "Phew. I think that's it."

She got to her feet and looked back at the house that she was abandoning and sighed, letting out a heavy sigh, spinning in a slow circle to look around the neighborhood. "I don't want to leave Angel Grove."

"Me neither," her baby brother, 13 year old Liam, said as he moved to stand beside her. He kicked at a rock, pulling up his sagging pants before adjusting the cap he wore backwards on his head. Melody glanced at him out of the corner of her eye, silently wondering when and how he had grown to be taller than her in the last three years. "I love it here."

"It's just two hours away from here." Melody turned and smiled at Charlie and Lisa Scott, her best friend Jason Lee Scott's parents as they carried a few boxes to the car that sat in her driveway. Lisa brushed her hands on her jeans and turned back to Melody, opening her arms for a tight hug. "Just promise you'll come back and visit."

"Of course," Melody said with a smile, returning the hug. She took a step back and simply let herself smile at the brunette. "Thanks so much for everything. For just always being there and for being parents to me, and for letting me stay at your house; for everything."

"No need to thank us," Charlie replied, pulling her to him in a tight hug, wrapping an arm around her shoulders, using one hand to mess up her hair. Melody gave a half annoyed, half amused look as she fixed her hair, before hugging him back. "This place sure is going to be quieter without you guys here."

"I'm really going to miss this place," Melody replied, looking over at the white picket fence that enclosed the backyard as her family dog, Rugby, started barking. He had his feet up on the top of the fence and his tongue was hanging out as he panted. "I love the weather here; nice and cool."

"Our new house is really close to the beach, dad says. Like, walking distance," Liam commented, his arms crossed over his chest. He pulled a packet of gum out of his pocket and popped a piece into his mouth, holding the pack out to his sister. "Not much of a selling point, considering _why_ we're moving." He turned towards Mr. and Mrs. Scott and gave his dimpled smile, holding his arms open for a hug.

"It's only for a little while, Liam," Lisa reminded him, placing a hand on his head.

Liam adjusted his hat, frowning a little bit. "That's sugar coating it," he commented. "The doctors don't even know if radiation will really help. Who knows how long we'll be gone?" He gave the Porter Family famous one-shouldered shrug. "As long as dad gets better."

"That's the spirit, Little Man," Mika, Melody's twin brother, commented as he rolled out of the garage on his skateboard, carrying a box in his arms. He stopped by the minivan that sat in the driveway, handing it to 17 year old Braiden, Melody's younger brother, who was leaning out of the car, wiggling his fingers for the box. "It's not like the move is final."

"Yeah, we're only renting the house," Braiden added, pulling the beanie off his head to run his fingers through his hair. "And it's not like we'll really be…friendless in the new city. I mean, Bulk is out there too."

"Why _did_ Bulk move out there?" Liam asked, turning to Melody, wrinkling his nose.

"Why does Bulk do anything?" Melody immediately replied, raising her eyebrows. "You got me, Little Man."

"I'm not little anymore in case you haven't noticed," Liam commented with a smirk, reaching out a hand to pat Melody on top of the head. She scowled, and grabbed his hand, forcing it down by his side.

"Geeze, you turn thirteen and you cop an attitude," Mika said with a shake of his head, handing Braiden his skateboard to put into the back of the car. "I believe that's everything."

Melody let out another sigh, looking back at the white house in front of her. They hadn't moved everything; the house still had its normal furnishings, but no one would be using it for who knows how long. The moving truck had left yesterday, taking with it the bigger contents of the house, everything that had been home to her for the past three years.

Only the empty shell of the white house; her home was left, bare and blank to her eyes. The huge bay windows she had looked out every day seemed so desolate from where she stood now. Memories swarmed around her. There was the porch swing she was sitting on the night she cried for hours before Jason, Zack Taylor, and Trini Kwan had left for Switzerland, the garden she helped create with her brothers, the porch she had danced on the minute she found out that Kimberly Hart would be coached by Gunther Schmidt. And today she would sever her last tie to the old white house and its memories, moving two hours away, closer to the hospital that worked endlessly to get rid of the cancer that had started to grow in her father.

She closed her eyes, trying to remember every part of the house, every nook and turn and bend. If only that memory could stay, as fresh as it was before the boxes came. She couldn't turn from the house, couldn't face the car that was ready to take her away. She felt a hand on her shoulder and turned to give her dad, Aaron, a smile, leaning into his side as he pressed a kiss to the top of her head.

"Skylar's double checking to make sure we have everything, and then we're ready to head out," Aaron said, more to Charlie and Lisa, offering his free hand to shake theirs. "Thank you for taking care of my daughter when I couldn't recently and her whole life. And thank you for coming over and helping us pack up."

"It was our pleasure," Lisa replied with a smile, reaching up a hand to brush her hair behind her ears. "We've always considered her to be the daughter we never had; we enjoyed seed her and Jason growing up."

Charlie placed a hand on Aaron's shoulder. "Take care of yourself, alright, man?" he asked and Aaron nodded. "Just so you know; if anything is to happen, we won't hesitate to take them in." He then removed his hand, curled his fingers into a fist and gently punched Aaron's shoulder. "You'll do well. You're a strong man."

"Thank you," Aaron replied with a nod. He then looked towards the house, with the door sitting wide open, cupped his hand around his mouth and called, "_Sky, you ready to go_?" Seconds later

"Let's hit the road," 17 year old Skylar, Braiden's twin brother, called as he jogged out of the house, closing the door behind him, locking the keys with his car. "We've got everything, dad."

"Why are you in such a rush to leave?" Mike asked, moving to give Lisa and Charlie a hug.

"Because Mama Scott made us cookies for the road," Melody replied with a smirk. "And dad says we can't eat them until we hit the highway." Braiden and Liam rolled their eyes but Skylar just grinned and shrugged. "Nice to know you have your priorities in order."

"Alright, let's go," Aaron said with a sigh, rubbing his hands together. Skylar tossed him the keys and Aaron caught them in his hand. "We should head out before we get stuck in bad traffic." He then turned to Lisa, who was silently crying, and Charlie. "Mel will give you a call once we arrive."

Melody let out a final heavy sigh, waiting for her brothers to climb into the car before sliding the side door shut and taking the passenger seat. She buckled herself in and passed the container of cookies back behind her. Rolling down the window, she leaned out, waving until she couldn't see the two people that served as her parents anymore.

"Bye, Angel Grove," she called out the window, minutes later as Aaron directed their car onto the highway.

"Next stop, Panorama City," he said quietly, glancing at his sons in the review mirror.

* * *

"_Wonderful_."

19 year old Jayden Shiba gave a short smile as he slid his hands into his jeans pockets, walking over to the man who stood before him, dressed in traditional Japanese dress for men, complete with the wooden shoes.

"I'm so proud that the boy I've devoted my life to training, has grown to be a master Samurai, and is ready to lead others in to battle."

Jayden's smile faded and his eyebrows twitched. "But, I'm used to fighting alone, Mentor," Jayden replied, twisting his mouth to the side. "_You_ know that. I mean, I just took on these Moogers myself." He gave a short shake of the head, his dark hair flying around his face. "I don't need any help." _I just need to look after myself, having to worry about others will slow me down. _He saw the deep frown on the man's face and meekly added, "I don't want to put anyone else in danger."

"The Mooger attacks are escalating, Jayden," the man replied, pointing towards the a gap in between a concrete wall and a stack of cardboard boxes. "More and more are coming across to do their evil."

Jayden's lips twitched into a grin as he crossed his arms over his face. "Sure, and if any more Moogers decide to pay us a visit, I'll introduce them to my Spin Sword," he replied with a laugh, moving past the man. "Ji, I'll be fine on my own. They others haven't had the training like I had." _They'll just slow me down_.

"Do not underestimate the power of Master Xandred if he awakens," Jayden's mentor, Ji, replied in a stern tone turning around to face Jayden's back. "His Nighlok legions are too much for one person; even one as strong as you. Even for someone as strong as your father." Jayden immediately stopped in his tracks. "_Teams_ of Samurai have battled this evil for centuries. It was only a matter of time and you know that."

Jayden slowly turned around to face Mentor Ji, but still didn't say anything. "We've seen evil threat the Earth for years, but we didn't think anything could happen, not until Astronema succeeded in capturing the citizens of Angel Grove. If that was possible, anything could happen. Master Xandred could reawaken and before that time comes, you need to learn what it's like to work with a team. It's the only way you'll succeed."

"Do you _really_ think I'm worthy of leading a team?" Jayden asked, his eyebrows twitching.

Ji slowly nodded. "It's what your training had prepared you for," he replied. Jayden scratched at his forehead, looking doubtful. "There are four others who have trained for these dark days and await the call to train with you and to fight as Samurai Rangers."

Jayden set his jaw, nodding repeatedly as he turned on his feet, heading out of the small walkway. "I understand," he managed to get out. "I'll do whatever it takes." He stopped when he saw a small three pointed shape, stuck to the side of the concrete wall nearest him. He pressed his lips together and reached out a hand, pressing a small button on the side of it. He then made his way over to the motorcycle that sat against a railing and grabbed one of the two helmets, clipping it under his chin._ Even if I don't like it_.

Ji climbed onto the bike, turning it on, causing it to roar to life. Jayden took the seat behind him, grabbing onto the handle behind him, allowing his mentor to drive him back to his house. He didn't realize that he had his teeth clenched the whole way until he got to the house and he released his jaw, noticing how tight and uncomfortable it felt.

He made his way out into the backyard, sitting on the back steps, peering at his training area. He stared at the practice dummy in front of him before pulling a red object out of his pocket. He held it flat in his hand, staring down at the red kanji for fire before it flipped open, "unfolding" itself into the shape of a line where it started to run up and down his arm. It was his zord.

_I've always fought the Moogers by myself_, Jayden thought as a gentle breeze blew, whipping his hair around his head. _It's nothing I can't handle by myself, Nighloks too. _He let out a breath of air through his nose.

"Jayden. _Jayden_."

Jayden turned, giving Mentor Ji a confused look as the older man took quick strides towards him. Jayden put his hand on top of the moving zord, causing it to still and fold itself back into its emblematic state. An uneasy feeling started creeping up into his chest when he saw how worried Ji looked. He then noticed one of Ji's hands had a bow in it, the other carrying for arrows, with blue, pink, green, and yellow feathers attached to them.

"Master Xanded must've awakened," Mentor explained, seeing the confused look on the Red Ranger's face. "A new breed of Nighlok, more powerful than ordinary Moogers have mobilized. You cannot wait any longer." Jayden opened his mouth to shoot back a reply, but Mentor continued talking. "It's time for you to create your team of Samurai Rangers."

Jayden let out a quiet noise of annoyance. "Are you _sure_ I'm ready to lead a team?" he asked, sounding doubtful. _They'd never be able to keep up. They haven't had the same formal, hard, training I've had_.

"One Samurai is strong, but a team is unbeatable," Mentor replied as Jayden got to his feet. "Just remember your father's words as he left for his final battle."

Jayden frowned, feeling a pang hit him in the heart. He turned his head away, setting his jaw. "_One day the great responsibility of the Red Ranger will fall to you_." Jayden glanced down at the folded object in his hand, his father's words ringing in his ears. "_Remember; protect the world from evil, stand by your allies, and never run from a battle_."

"You're right, Ji," Jayden replied, lifting his eyes to look up at his mentor. "I'll never forget my father's last words. I _must_ not fail. I _am _the Red Ranger. I have to lead this team." _Whether I like I or not_.

"The other four Rangers have been preparing their whole lives to fulfill their Samurai destinies," Mentor Ji explained. He motioned towards the arrows in his hands. "It's time for you to fulfill your destiny; to lead them." Jayden nodded and one by one, wrapped a piece of paper around an arrow, strung it in the bow, and shot it off into the air. "Follow me."

Jayden hurried after Mentor Ji who suddenly burst into the house through the back doors, making his way into the living room. Mentor pushed a long wooden table away and Jayden came face to face with a square panel in the ground with a handle. Mentor grabbed onto the handle, lifting the wooden panel and peered down into a storage space where five cell phone looking devices sat in a circle. In the middle of the circle was a star shaped object with a purple symbol sitting on top.

"I've been saving these until you were finally ready," Mentor replied. "Take them; your fellow Rangers are already on their way."

"Mentor, you said that there were only four Rangers," Jayden replied, motioning to the fifth cell phone like object and the star shaped object. "But there's a fifth Samu—"

"The owner is not ready to take on a task such as this," Mentor replied, grabbing the four objects, handing them to Jayden. "We won't call on them unless we need to." Jayden still looked confused and Mentor closed the panel. "Jayden; you need to get going."

Jayden heard the finality in his mentor's voice and nodded. "I'm ready to lead," he replied. He let out a deep breath of air before making his way back outside. Mentor handed him a small red bag, and Jayden slid the objects inside, pulling his own out of his pocket. He used his thumb to flip it open, and a red glow appeared at the top of it.

"Symbol Power," Jayden called out loud, and started to draw a symbol in the air, red lines following after the movement. "Horse." He swiped his hand across the floating symbol and in a flash of light a pure white horse appeared in front of him. Jayden walked over to the horse, attaching the small white bag to the saddle before pulling himself up onto its back.

"Never forget the mission of the Samurai Ranger," Mentor said to Jayden as his horse shifted back and forth underneath him. Jayden pulled on the reins turning the horse around to face the gates as it swung open, at the same time, trying to keep it under control. "Be brave, work together, and no matter what, don't ever give up."

_I'll never give up_, Jayden thought, giving his mentor another nod. He nudged the horse forward with his heels, and the horse charged forward. Jayden tightly gripped the reigns, bouncing along on the back of the horse. _I won't quit until Master Xandred is gone_.

* * *

An African American teenage boy ran through the streets in nothing but a swim cap, swim goggles, a loose coat, sweat pants and tennis shoes. His chest burned, as well as his cheeks, as everybody he passed gave him an odd look. But, he didn't care. He was on a mission; one that would change his life forever. He looked both ways before crossing a street, but stopped almost halfway across when he saw a black Escalade rolling towards him, a familiar symbol on the side.

"Wait!" he shouted, waving his arms in the air as the car started to drive past him. He saw the driver in the front and peered through the window, spotting the silhouette of someone sitting in the back. The car slowed to a stop and he ran around to the other side. "Wait, stop!"

Chest, heaving as he fought for air, he stopped at the back window, giving a small bow. "I'm Kevin; and I'm here to _fight with you_." He heard the familiar sound of the window being rolled down and looked up into the eyes of an Asian beauty, who gave him a confused look, mixed with hints of pity.

Kevin noticed that her gaze was lower than his eyes and noticed that she was staring at his chest. Kevin felt heart rise up his body in a full blow blush as he quickly stepped back from the car, zipping up his jacket. He cleared his throat and pulled the swimming cap off his head as well as the goggles, shoving them into his sweatpants pockets. He then looked at her nervously.

"I'm sorry," he stammered out, giving a short laugh of nervousness, "I didn't realize the Red Ranger was a girl."

The look of confusion let the woman's face and curiosity took over as she unbuckled herself, opened the car door, and slid out. "I'm not the Red Ranger," she explained, closing the door behind her. She brushed her side ponytail off her shoulder. "I'm the Pink Ranger. My name is Mia." She offered her hand, giving a smile, glancing at his jacket. "Well, Kevin, I'm assuming you're blue."

"Yeah, I'm—" Kevin said offering his hand, but they were interrupted by a shorter blonde girl, running up to them, jumping to try and reach a Yellow Ape that flew into the air. She finally caught it, sliding her backpack down one shoulder, unzipping it.

"Sorry to interrupt," she said with a dazzling smile, showing off her white teeth. She slid the yellow bear, which folded itself up into its triangle shape and stuff it into her backpack. She moved her eyes towards Kevin. "Are you the Red ranger?"

"Uh…no," Kevin replied with a shake of his head, exchanging glances with Mia. "I'm the Blue."

"Oh," the girl replied, frowning. "Sorry. Anyway, I'm Emily, the _Yellow _Ranger. I'm—"

"You guys must be my peeps." They all turned and saw a man with piercing green eyes walk up to them, tossing a square shaped object in the air. Kevin immediately spotted the green symbol on the front. He held his hand flat and the square shaped object turned into a Green Bear. "My buddy here showed me the way."

The object turned back into its square shape and he rolled it up his arm, bouncing it off his biceps and into the air, where he caught it with a cocky grin. Kevin slowly shook his head, his eyes narrowing.. With a frown he asked, "_You're_ the red Ranger?"

The man arched an eyebrow scoffed, shaking his head as if he was truly offended, "No, I'm mighty green." He offered his fist towards Kevin. "I'm Mike. Sup dude? Dudettes?"

Emily thrust her hand in Mike's face. "Hi, I'm—" She was cut off when she heard a horse whinny and turned around to see a teenager riding up on a white horse, his eyes darting back and forth as he looked at each of them.

"With an entrance like that, you _have_ to be the red Ranger," Mike said, looking impressed. "Dude, wouldn't it have been faster if you took a car, though?" Kevin gave him a hard elbow to the side and the teenager on horseback merely glanced in his direction.

"Yes," the teenager replied, holding up his own object, showing the red symbol on the front. "_I _am the Red Ranger. My name is Jayden."

"_We're_ your team of Samurai," Kevin stepped forward a look of determination on his face. Mike glanced at him out of the corner of his eye and rolled his eyes. Jayden looked at the four Samurai Rangers skeptically. Kevin shifted his weight from foot to foot under the Red Ranger's gaze. "We're ready to fight alongside you."

"Let me warn you now," Jayden said, puling tightly on the reins of the horse that started to get a little skittish, as it sensed what was wrong around it. "If you follow me, there is no turning back. Either we defeat the Nighlok together, or they will take over the world." He swallowed thickly.

"I will not let what happened to Angel Grove, happen here in Panorama City." He reached down into the bag that hung off the saddle and pulled out four cell phone like objects. " I will give these to only those who are ready to accept the challenge. These are your Samuraizers; they will help you morph in battle."

Jayden held them up for the Rangers to see. Kevin's fingers twitched at his sides. He could practically feel the cool surface of the object in his hand. He could practically feel the power; something he has been working hard for his entire life. He watched as Jayden climbed down from the horse and slowly walked over to them.

"Do not accept because you were trained to do so," Jayden explained, once again, looking at them one at a time as if expecting one of them to start running. Kevin planted his feet on the ground. He wasn't going to leave. "Accept only if you are willing to commit and fight as Samurai Power Rangers with _all _your heart." Kevin slid his hand into his pocket, touching the rubber of his swimming cap.

_You can do this, Kev. You've been training your whole life for it_. Kevin removed his hand from his pocket and Jayden's eyes flickered towards him, narrowing slightly. As much as Kevin had dreamed of swimming in the Olympics, he knew being a Samurai was more important. There wouldn't be a place to swim if the world was taken over. _The world is counting on you._

"Without hesitation," Kevin replied nodding, curling his hands into fists at his side.

Mia glanced over at Kevin before nodding, "I've been planning for this since I was a little girl." Jayden glanced at her, his eyes narrowing even more. "So, yes."

"I'm ready to give it all I've got," Emily replied, taking a large step forward, holding onto her backpack straps, tightly. She had a wide smile on her face.

"Okay, okay," Mike said with an eye roll at Mia, Kevin, and Emily. "Do we have to be so formal?" He held a fist up to Jayden. "Let's do this." Jayden turned away from them, tossing one of the Samuraizers at Kevin, who quickly caught it against his chest. He pulled out three more Samuraizers and tossed them to Mike, Emily, and Mia.

"You're all sure?" Jayden asked them. He got nods in reply. "Let's go." He pulled his Samuraizer out of his pocket and slashed it through the air, the horse disappearing in thin air. He ignored the collective "whoa" from the other Rangers and pulled open the rear door the Mia just left. "Get in; I'll explain on the way."

* * *

Jayden's heart pounded in his chest as he watched a flume of smoke go shooting up into the air. He directed the driver as close to the plaza as possible, before motioning for him to stop the car. He was aware of the Rangers dead silent in the back of the car, but he didn't care. Holding his Samuraizer tightly in his hand, he slipped out of the car, closing the door shut behind him.

"Alright, Rangers," he said over his shoulder, hearing the rapid footsteps of the Rangers behind him, trying to keep up with him. "Now's the time to really prove if you're all for this or not. Never give up and most importantly, don't back down. If you can't handle it, leave now. I have a mission, I'm determined to see through." _I will not fail_.

He stumbled when he felt the ground suddenly give a large shake. He heard terrified screams shortly behind the rumble. He turned around to face the Rangers, spotting the uneasy looks on their faces. "Are you absolutely _sure_?" He got nods again and he nodded in reply, turning back around to see where he was going. _Let's see how this turns out_. Another loud shriek pierced the air. "_That's enough, Nighlok_."

Jayden led the way up to the top of a stairway, looking down at Moogers, a Nighlok, and the frightened citizens of the city. Jayden heard Mia's sharp intake of breath, but didn't bother to look at her. His eyes zeroed in on the Nighlok, Tooya.

"Well, it's about time," the Nighlok called over to the Rangers in a taunting tone. "Who are you anyway?"

"We're the Samurai Rangers," Jayden replied, thrusting his Samuraizer into the air. "Samuraizer! Go go Samurai!"

The Rangers quickly morphed and Jayden instantly led the charge into battle. He kept his sights on the Moogers that stopped him on his beeline towards the Nighlok. He didn't care how the others were doing at that point in time. He fought the Moogers like they were nothing, although breathing hard in his effort to get to the Nighlok.

The Moogers kept coming and the Rangers were starting to feel tired. They weren't challenging opponents, but they had been fighting for a long time and it was starting to wear them out. Jayden soon found that he was faced by a wall of Moogers, aiming arrows at him. He quickly swung his sword through the air, slicing and cutting through arrows at they flew towards him, deflecting them away from his body. He grabbed an arrow in mid air and used his hand to break the arrow. He was barely aware of the fact that the other Rangers were standing by him.

"There's too many of them," Emily cried, looking around worriedly.

"We can hold 'em off," Kevin said, bracing his feet on the ground, chest heaving as he tried to regulate his breathing.

"But they're too many of them," Mia replied.

Jayden felt a pang of annoyance. He wanted to go off and fight on his own. He _knew_ that he could take care of the Moogers and the Nighlok himself. But, he also knew that he had to work with his new teammates. "Guys," he said, giving the black disc at the base of his sword a hard push. "We can do this, _together_. Follow my lead." In a flash of light, his Spin Sword changed into a large zanbato. "Fire Smasher!" He unmasked his Red Lion Disc, placing it on his weapon, using his elbow to closer the disc holder front.

"What just happened?" Mike asked, reaching out to touch the new weapon. Jayden jerked it out of the way.

"Duck," he said to the Rangers before starting a spin. The Rangers quickly did as he was told, feeling the rush of the wind of the large weapon swinging above their heads. "Come on."

Jayden rested the weapon against his shoulder and charged towards the Moogers. _Where are you, Nighlok_? He growled in frustration as his eyes darted back and forth, trying to find the monster. _Man, I took my eyes off him for one second! _Suddenly, a flash of light sailed past him and he spotted the red and blue Nighlok.

"There you are!" Jayden shouted. He jumped out of the way of a ball of energy that the Nighlok shot at him. Jayden charged towards the Nighlok, holding his Fire Smasher in front of him as a shield. When he got close enough, he swung the Fire Smasher at the Nighlok, striking it across its mouth. "Take this, skirt face!" Using a high attack, drawing the Nighlok's arms away from its body, Jayden lifted a foot and kicked Tooya in the stomach before striking the Nighlok with a diagonal slash, sending him flying into a car.

Jayden chuckled to himself as the Tooya rolled off the top of the car, landing on the ground. The Nighlok quickly got to its feet, shoved its fist through the glass of the window, breaking it, and grabbed the door handle, running forward. Jayden's eyes widened when he saw the car gain speed, sailing towards him. He clenched his teeth and cut through the car with his Fire Smasher before charging forward once again, slamming the weapon into the Nighlok's stomach, pushing him back into a concrete pillar.

"Say your prayers, Nighlok," Jayden growled as the Nighlok doubled over in pain.

Letting out a loud battle cry, Jayden swung his Fire Smasher horizontally, striking through the Nighlok, defeating it. Jayden smirked behind his helmet as flames burst in front of his face. He looked over his shoulders at the other Rangers as his Fire Smasher changed back into his Spin Sword. He heard rapid footsteps and looked over his shoulder as the other Rangers hurried over to him.

Mike let out a whistle, shaking his head. "Did you see how I rocked that Mooger?" Mike asked, spinning his spear, called the Forest Spear, in his hands, gently running his hand over the flat side of the blade.

"Yeah, we all did _great_," Mia commented, lowering her Sky Fan.

"Jayden, great Samurai moves," Kevin said as he hurried over to Jayden as he got to his feet. Jayden shot Kevin an odd look when the Blue Ranger clapped him on the back before giving a small bow. "You really _are_ a Master Samurai."

"Thanks," Jayden replied shortly, fighting the urge to roll his eyes and shake his head behind his helmet. "But, we're not done yet. Each Nighlok has _two _forms; you saw the first. Now get set for the _mega_ monster." As soon as the words left his mouth, there was a loud whooshing sound and Tooya started cackling as he grew bigger and bigger in front of the Rangers' eyes.

"Fee, fi, fo, fum, time to crush some Ranger bums," the Nighlok sing-songed, swinging down a hand.

"Look out!" Jayden shouted, running away as fast as he could. He quickly jumped out of the way of the attacked rolling once, landing on his knees. His knees stung as he got to his feet.

"Look at the size of him!" Mike cried.

"How are we going to face him now?" Mia asked, getting to her feet.

"Guys, we can fight this Nighlok," Kevin said, putting his sword up in its sheath. "Remember your training. We all have our own foldginzord." Kevin's foldingzord unfolded into a dragon, sitting in his palm. It quickly re-folded back into its original octagon shape and Kevin thrust it into everyone's faces. "If we combine our Samurai Power, we can morph into Mega Mode."

Jayden's lips twitched as he stared in surprise at the Blue Ranger. _Hmm. Maybe one of them will work out after all_. "Kevin's right," Jayden spoke up, grabbing his Samuraizer. "Follow my lead; Lion Foldingzord. Mega Mode Power."

"We're right behind you," Kevin said, watching the Red Lionzord fly through the air, towards the Nighlok, controlled by Jayden. "Dragon Foldingzord."

"Turtle Foldingzord," Mia cried.

"Bear Foldingzord," Mike shouted.

"Ape Foldingzord," Emily concluded before they all said together, "Mega Mode Power!"

The Rangers landed in the cockpits of their respective zords and followed Jayden's Lion Zord into battle. Jayden directed the Lion Zord forward, striking Tooya as it ran past. Tooya retaliated by striking Jayden's zord with its two swords, shooting sparks in every direction. Emily was next, direction the Yellow Ape Zord to use its hands to repeatedly punch Tooya in the face and chest before folding into its triangle shape, rolling forward, striking the Nighlok again, knocking it over. Mia was close behind, using her Pink Turtle Zord to spin rapidly in a circle.

Tooya climbed to his feet, laughing. He swung down a fist and hit the top of the circular zord, knocking it into the second mouth on its "skirt." He then noticed the Green Bear Zord rushing forward and shot beams of energy out of its eyes, hoping to strike the zord. But, the Bear Zord maneuvered around each attack and repeatedly struck the Nighlok until Tooya easily lifted it off the ground. The Bear Zord turned back into its square shape and Tooya dropped it on his foot, causing the second mouth to open in a scream of pain, releasing Mia's.

Kevin finished up the attack by dropping on the Nighlok's head as it tried to run after Mia and Kevin. As the zord unfolded itself into its dragon form, it shot blue flames out of its mouth, striking Tooya directly in the face, causing the Nighlok to scream in pain. Jayden defeated the Nighlok by using his attack "Pentagonal Fury." The back legs of the Lion Zord tucked in and it's front legs rotated to create a set of "wings" propelling the Pentagon shaped zord forward as it burst into flames, striking the Nighlok as it shot past.

Jayden grinned as the Nighlok exploded for a second time in a ball of fire. "Samurai Rangers, victory is ours." Jayden pressed his lips together as he watched little sparks of fire burn itself out as it floated back to the ground. _Maybe they'll be useful after all. But, that was just one fight. Who knows how good they actually are_? "Rangers…let's get back to the house."

* * *

The Rangers looked around in awe as they entered the gates of the Shiba House. Their new home was so much more than they had ever expected. It was rather large, with more than enough room to house the five of them and their mentor and from what they could tell from the outside it also had an outdoor barbecue and dojo. At least, while they were away from home, they knew they would be living in the lap of luxury.

Emily couldn't figure out where she wanted to check out first as her feet crunched over the gravel in the backyard. Her eyes darted back and forth and she gave her triangle foldingzord a tight squeeze to try and calm herself down. As she bounced on the heels of her feet, she could feel her backpack lightly hitting her in the back, further helping her accept that fact that this was her life now. "What a rush," she finally said after a moment of silent. "We did good."

"Piece of cake," Mike agreed, bringing up the rear of the group. He let out a low whistle, something Jayden noticed he did a lot when he was amazed. "Nice crib, dude. Looks like it'll suit me just fine."

"Great job, today," Jayden said giving the Rangers a nod. "There's nothing we can do as a team." Jayden was looking at Mentor Ji, who was coming out of the house, as he said those words. Ji silently nodded back and Jayden scratched the side of his jaw.

"Thank you for leading us into battle," Kevin said, offering his hand to Jayden's. Jayden merely glanced at Kevin's hand before giving his attention back to his mentor.

"Bravo," Mentor Ji said, announcing his presence. "Such energy, such grace. I'm proud of you."

"Who is that?" Mia whispered to Emily who shrugged.

"This is Ji; our mentor," Jayden replied, moving to stand beside the older man, smiling at him.

"Welcome to your new home," Ji said, giving each of the Rangers a warm smile. "You've all come from different places and families but share one noble goal. I'm very proud of how you've come together."

Jayden dropped his gaze to his feet for a moment before looking back up at his mentor. "We just followed some good advice and worked together as a team," he replied. _Kind of_.

"Yes," Mentor replied, locking eyes with him. "But, you're not any team. _You _are the Samurai Rangers. And you'll forever be held tightly with this common bond."

"Rangers together, Samurai forever," Jayden said to himself before turning around to face his new teammates. _Might as well get used to it. _He held out his foldingzord and Mia, Emily, Kevin, and Mike moved to stand in a circle, doing the same with their zords. "Say it with me."

The four Rangers exchanged glances and nodded, joining Jayden when he shouted, "RANGERS TOGETHER, SAMURAI FOREVER!"

Jayden then slid his foldingzord into his pocket. "I know you all didn't properly have a chance to prepare to come here," he explained, looking over at Ji who nodded. "But, you'll find that Ji and I will try and help with your transition to your new lifestyle."

"I got in contact with your parents, and they should be shipping your belongings in the next few days," Ji spoke up. "Given the space in the house and the number of available rooms, you will be having roommates; girls with girls and guys with guys."

"Your roommates will also be your training partners," Jayden added. He was quick to notice Kevin look Mike up and down and shake his head, looking annoyed. "We practice bright and early every morning at 8 o'clock; don't be late."

"And on that note; let's go room hunting," Mike said clapping his hands together before leading the mad rush into the house.

"So _she's_ the one replacing Serena," Jayden commented, crossing his arms over his chest. "I don't know, Ji. She clearly hasn't spent enough time training as the rest of us. She could slow us down."

"If the Ape Zord trusts her," Mentor Ji said in a calm voice, putting a hand on Jayden's shoulder, "Then I trust her and so should you."

"What about the final Ranger?" Jayden asked, changing the subject. "Were you ever planning on telling me who that is and why we didn't call them?"

Ji gave a heavy sigh. "Things are only going to get harder, Jayden," Ji replied, giving him a serious look. "I'll tell you now, she's a special case." Jayden's eyebrows rose at the word 'she'. "Zero Samurai training at all." Jayden's eyebrows then knitted together into a look of confusion. "But, she'll be a big help. I'll tell you who it is, but I'm trust you when to call on her."

"Our team already has a hitch with one girl who's barely learned how to be a Samurai," Jayden said, slowly shaking his head. "And now you're telling me there's one more Ranger who's never trained a day in her life? I know you want me to lead this tam, Ji, but I'm not going to run it into the ground."

With that, he headed inside the house. _I knew I should've done this on my own_.

* * *

"I don't know what's worse," Mika commented as he sat on the floor unpacking a box of pots and pans. "Packing or unpacking?"

"Unpacking," Melody replied automatically as she carried one of the last few cardboard boxes from the van, into the living room of the new house, her shoulder up to her ear, propping up her cell phone. "You're tired from lugging everything in, but you have to put it in the right spot."

"Mmm, that's true," Mika replied, grabbing a stack of pots, carrying them into the furnished kitchen. "Dad wasn't kidding, it's near the beach. I could practically smell the ocean from here."

"First order of business," Skylar announced, entering the living room wearing only swim trunks. "Drop the stuff and let's hit the beach!" He punched the air with his fists before jumping over the arm of the couch, landing on the cushions.

"Hi, it's Mel. You must be out. Just calling to say we made it to the city. Bye," Melody said into her phone, jabbing her thumb into the END button before dropping it with a loud SMACK onto her brother's stomach. "Check the swell charts online."

"We should get this stuff done first, bro," Braiden commented, coming down the stairs, tossing an empty box over the railing. "That way we could just crash when we get back."

"That's everything from the car," Aaron announced, following Liam inside, closing the door behind him. He sighed when he saw the sudden sad looks on his kids' faces. "Hey, we'll be out of here before you know it. Angel Grove isn't that far away. We can always go back and visit."

"It's not the same as living there," Liam replied, with a pout, sitting Indian style on the floor, dragging a key through the tape on top of the box, unsealing it.

"I promise, everything will be fine here," Aaron said, reaching out a hand to remove Liam's hat, mussing his hair. "You'll learn to love the city. We can all go check out the restaurant tomorrow."

"You're opening up a place here?" Melody asked, wrinkling her nose.

"I've gotta do something to bring in the money," Aaron replied, dropping down into the nearest chair letting out a long sigh. "Hospital bills will be through the roof before we know it. I'm well enough to keep working."

"Are you ok, dad?" Braiden asked, taking quick steps into the kitchen. "Do you want some water? We can order in for dinner, you don't have to make anything."

"I'm alright, just a little tired," Aaron replied, briefly closing his eyes. "You guys go down to the beach and have some fun, I'll get all of this."

"No, dad, that's not fair to you," Skylar said, suddenly sitting up, setting Melody's phone aside. "We'll order in. You relax and we'll get everything unpacked." He exchanged glances with Braiden. "We don't want to leave you by yourself, just in case."

"We can put up some pictures, make it more homey," Melody suggested, crawling over to a box, ripping off the tape. She laughed a little bit as she opened it and a black cat, shimmied its way out. She looked in the box and saw a stack of pillows and blankets. "So _that's_ where you've been the whole time, Jaeger?"

The cat nodded, arching its back in a long stretch. "It's a great place for sleeping," he replied, licking a forepaw, dragging it over his face. "Except there was something in there, jabbing my back. Although, if I twisted the right way, it was a good back scratcher."

Melody rolled her eyes as she lifted a wooden box out of the box of pillows placing it on the glass table in front of her. "What's in the box, sweetie?" Aaron asked, sitting forward in his chair. Melody paused in retrieving the pillows from the box and popped open the latch on the wooden box, lifting the lid, staring down at the wrist objects inside.

"Your morphers?" Braiden asked, lifting one out of the box, rolling it over in his hands. "Turbo Morpher, Zeonizer, communicator, and…" He lifted a cracked coin out of the bottom before grabbing its holder. "You can't use your Dino Morpher, so why'd you bring it?"

"Memories," Melody replied with a shrug."Besides, my Turbo Morphers and Zeonizers still work. I've seen how using the Power Coin affected Adam, I'm not going to make the same mistake." She held out her hand for the cracked coin and ran her fingers over the ridges. "Besides, something tells me I needed to bring it with me."

* * *

**And there's the first chapter. I liked the Shinkenger plot better with Takeru wanting to do things on his own so I put that into Jayden, but you'll see him start to change his mind in the next one. Hope you guys like this. The next part will be up soon.**

**~MysticMelody101~**


	2. Part II

**Part II**

* * *

"There is more to being a Power Ranger, than mastering a sword." Mentor Ji walked back and forth behind the Rangers the next day.

Emily, Mia, Kevin, and Mike had moved into the house fairly smoothly. With the help of a mall run the day before and getting sent some of their belongings from their parents that arrived that morning, they were more relaxed in the house. Jayden wasn't used to all the noise and all the people in the house. With Mike staying up late playing video games in the living room, Kevin yelling at him for the mess the Green Ranger had already created in their room, and the two girls talking and giggling, he was amazed he had lasted the night.

Waking up the next morning, making breakfast for himself and waiting to hear from Ji about what they would be doing that day, did he relax. For the first time since everything had started changing, he had a little time to himself, just like it used to be. He couldn't wait to start training as it was a way for him to relax and to let out his frustrations.

The Rangers were standing in the backyard at easels, practicing how to draw their respective symbols. "You must also learn to use your inherited Samurai Symbols."

Jayden sighed, dipping his large brush into the jar of black paint that sat on his easel and quickly drew the symbol for Fire, watching as the symbol burned, setting the tip of the brush on fire. Jayden smirked as he blew out the flames. _Piece of cake_.

He glanced down the line of Rangers, watching as Kevin, Emily, and Mia took their turns drawing their symbols. Once Kevin got his right, water splashed him in the face, Emily's conjured a large rock that dropped onto Kevin's foot, and Mia's blew a gentle breeze through the yard.

Jayden kept his thoughts to himself about how they fared. _Kevin is the one who's the most serious with his training, but he could use a little bit more with his symbol power_. Jayden quickly drew a symbol in the air and a towel fell into his hands. He silently tossed it over to Kevin who accepted it with a nod of thanks. _Emily clearly has a long way to go, but with what she does know, I'm pretty impressed_. He looked over at Mia as she finger combed her hair back to its normal position. _Mia's definitely got a grasp on her symbol power; but she was quick to tire in the battle yesterday. With the right training, she could excel quickly. _

And then there was Mike.

Jayden glanced over at his piece of paper and cringed when he saw the large splotches and swipes of black paint staring back at him. Mike had a look of confusion on his face as he quickly drew symbol after symbol on his paper, trying to get his symbol power right, muttering to himself.

"Was it this way?" Mike asked, his voice barely above a whisper. A grin then came to his face and he rapidly drew his symbol. "That's it!" His smile slowly faded when nothing happened. "Huh?"

"The order of the strokes is wrong," Mentor Ji commented, stepping up behind Mike. He noticed Kevin rolling his eyes, but didn't say anything. "You must practice more."

"Ok, I get it," Mike said with a heavy sigh. "Practice." He lifted the brush again, but didn't move to draw on the paper. Suddenly, he turned back towards Mentor Ji, putting a hand on the mentor's shoulder. "How about a lunch break? You'd be amazed at how well I practice _after_ a few slices of pizza.

Jayden fought the urge to roll his eyes and shake his head. He instead, ran a hand over his face, letting out a long sigh. Mentor merely glanced at Mike's hand on his shoulder before looking the Green Ranger in the eye. Mike's smile faded and he instantly pulled his hand back.

"You're not going to improve at all if you waste your time trying to find a way to stop practicing," Jayden commented, crossing his arms over his chest. "Mastering your symbol power is far more important than how you wield a sword, Mike."

"I know, I know," Mike muttered.

"No, I don't think you do know," Jayden replied, his eyes narrowing slightly. "This isn't like one of your video games, Mike. It's not something you can put off once it gets hard and come back to it later. This is _real_ life. I expect you to take this seriously." Mike, looking offended, looked as if he was going to shoot back a reply, but Jayden kept going. "And you were late as well. I hope you understand that because of you, we all lower ourselves by one notch…in swordsmanship, special powers, even in spirit."

Mike blinked, looking annoyed, and sighed through his nose, slowly relaxing. "I know," he said quietly, sliding his hands into his jeans pockets, kicking at a rock. "Really, I do. I'm sorry."

"Alright, everybody go change," Mentor commented, glancing at Mike for a brief moment before turning towards the other Rangers. "Your training clothes are on your beds. We'll be working inside, today, just to see where you guys are."

"Sweet," Mike grinned, slapping down his paint brush. "Time for me to show you guys my moves." He moved to go inside, but Jayden threw out his arm, catching him in the chest. "What's up, dude?"

"First off; don't call me dude," Jayden replied, giving Mike a warning look. "Secondly, since you were late, and you still need to practice, you won't go inside to train until you turn in 100 symbols." Mike pressed his lips together. "And I don't want 100 quick symbols, I want you to take your time with this."

"What if I don't get it right?" Mike asked, glancing at the paint covered paper in front of him.

"Then you don't get it right," Jayden replied with a shrug, taking the abandoned paint brush, slapping it in his hand. "Get to it."

Mike stared, jaw dropped at Jayden's retreating back before slowly turning around to face the easel, groaning. "Practice makes perfect, right?"

"No," Jayden said over his shoulder. "Perfect practice makes perfect execution."

"_Perfect practice makes perfect execution_," Mike repeated in a nasally tone, rolling his eyes. "Please. At least I before I got here I had some fun." He then sighed. "And some friends."

* * *

Melody rubbed at her eyes as she followed the smell of bacon into the kitchen. Liam, Braiden, and Mika were already half way through their pancake and gave a muffled noise of greeting at the same time.

"It's about time you're up," Skylar commented, turning away from the stove. He used the spatula in his hands to point at a plate with three stacks of pancakes on top. "Your plate's over there. Chocolate chip, blueberry, or plain. Bacon's almost done."

"Kay," Melody muttered, blinking rapidly a few times, looking a little more awake. She grabbed her plate and got four chocolate chip pancakes, and after searching for a little bit got a fork and a knife and joined her brothers at the table. "Where's dad?"

"He left early to check out the new location for the restaurant," Mika replied, practically drowning the second half of his pancakes in syrup. "He wants us to head down there later."

"So where's the new place?" Melody asked, starting to cut her pancakes. She took a bite and instantly smiled. "Nice 'cakes, Sky."

"Thanks," Skylar replied, turning off the stove top. He lifted the frying pan filled with sizzling bacon and carefully walked around the table, making sure he didn't burn anyone with the frying pan, and placed bacon on all of their plates before fixing his own, joining them at the table. "It's on East 12th street. It's a little bigger than the one back in Angel Grove, and the layout is kinda different as well; at least that's what he said over the phone. "

"If all things go as planned, the place should be opened in the next few weeks," Mika added, leaning back in his chair. "You wanna walk or take the bus?"

Melody glanced at her watch. "I'm going to have to meet you guys down there," she replied. "I was talking to Bulk last night and he said that Skull's on, Spike was coming into town. He wants me to meet them at the bus stop."

"I'm _still_ surprised you and Bulk are friends now," Skylar commented around a mouthful of food. He ignored the disgusted looks his siblings gave him. "Considering he bullied you all those years."

"Yeah, same here," Melody replied with a small smile. "But, people change." She then gave him a smirk. "But, I personally think you'll forever be a pig headed weasel."

"Anything to make your life miserable, Jerk-Face," Skylar replied with a pleasant smile.

"Knock it off," Mika commented, running his hands over his face. "Good god, no one would _ever_ know you were 18 and 17 respectively by the way you guys act."

"We're almost 19," Melody pointed out, giving her twin an annoyed look.

"And we're almost 18," Skylar added, motioning to himself and Braiden.

"I just generally deny that they're even related to me," Braiden spoke up, earning a round of loud laughter from Liam. Skylar picked two blueberries from his pancake and threw it at his brothers. Liam made a noise of protest and Braiden caught his in his mouth, grinning in a cocky way before chewing happily.

"I should get going soon," Melody commented, glancing at her watch, starting to pick up speed as she ate her breakfast. "You guys up for a surf today?"

"Definitely," Liam said with a grin, punching the air with his fists. "And we can check out the city as well. I wonder if they have a youth lacrosse team here." He leaned back in his chair and let out a large burp. Skylar grinned and slapped his palm in a high five. Catching Mika's eye, he muttered out a quiet, "Excuse me."

"Might as well look for _something_ to do in our free time," Mika commented. "Between online classes and looking at dad's restaurant, we need something fun to do."

"We could see if places need a live band to perform for some extra cash," Skylar commented, before playing the air guitar, earning eye rolls from Liam and Braiden. "With four out of the five us taking courses online, and Liam's still being homeschooled, we have plenty of time to rehearse and everything."

"Tell me everything you come up with when I get back," Melody commented, pushing her plate into the center of the table. "Anyone can finish it."

"I call her bacon!" Liam shouted, practically leaping onto the table, trying to reach the pork product.

Melody left her brothers to fight over her food as she hurried up to her room. She quickly changed out of her pajamas into a tank top, jean capris, and Punkrose high tops. She quickly typed out a text on her cell phone with one hand, grabbing her wallet, skateboard, and keys with the other.

She called out a quick "bye" to her brothers before hurrying out the front door. She dropped her skateboard on the ground and stepped onto it, pushed off with her free foot, making her way into town.

The afternoon air was cool and calm, and the brisk wind felt gentle upon her face. The smell of wet grass from the morning dew filled the air. The sun was already high in the sky, beaming down on her. She could smell the salt of the ocean in the air, and kept her head on a swivel, hoping to catch a sliver of the vast blue area that her dad had said they lived near.

The sound of her skateboard wheels traversing the pavement followed her, before quickly being drowned out by the crowds of people that seemed to pop up out of nowhere. The city was truly beautiful. The sun bounced off of all the glass on the buildings, the people all seemed to be in a good mood, and the stores looked to be warm and inviting as well. A few people waved at her as she rolled past on her skateboard.

Melody waved back, taking her eyes off the sidewalk in front of her, turning forward in enough time to collide with a semi-solid barrier. The barrier made a loud oomph and went down with her. Melody landed hard on her side, a little ways away from her skateboard. Her elbow erupted with pain and she noticed that it had turned bright red and little tiny rocks were imbedded in her skin.

"Sorry," she said, spotting an African American boy, who looked to be around her age, slowly getting off the ground. He was wearing a blue jacket over a white shirt. "I didn't see you."

"Watch where you're going next time," the boy said in frustration, getting to his feet, brushing off his clothes.

"Geeze, I said I was sorry," Melody commented, stomping on the edge of her board, catching it with one hand as it flew up. "Apparently no one ever taught you how to accept apologies."

"Sorry, I'm looking for someone," the boy replied.

"Not my problem, asshole," Melody replied dropping her skateboard to the ground, rolling off, shaking her head. "God, people these days." She soon made it to the bus station and slowed to a stop, grabbing her skateboard off the ground, looking around. There were some people sitting in chairs, milling around, but it didn't look like they had been sitting there that long. "Hmm, I wonder if the bus already came."

She started tapping her fingers on her chin as she thought, rolling her skateboard back and forth with her foot. "If I were Bulk, where would I go?" Suddenly, the distinct smell of a grill hit her nose and she grinned. "Food." She followed the smell and blinked in surprise when she was hit with something hard and wet.

"A pepper?" she asked, glancing down at the ground, spotting the offending object. She picked it up and looked around, spotting who she was looking for and rolled over. "Farkus Bulkmeier, is there a reason why I just got smacked in the head with a pepper?" She waved the red vegetable chunk around and then noticed that her friend, Bulk, was covered in ketchup. "Huh. Funnily enough, I'm not surprised that happened either."

"Auntie Mel!"

Melody turned and grinned at Spike Skullovitch, who was Bulk's best friends, Skull, son. Spike dropped his bags to the ground and wrapped his arms around Melody in a tight hug, lifting her off the ground, her arms pinned by her sides.

"It's nice to see you, Spike," Melody choked out, kicking her feet, trying to get back on the ground. "You're hugging too tight."

"Oh, sorry," Spike replied in a nasally tone before letting go. Melody dropped to the ground in a heap and Spike burst out laughing. "Man, Auntie Mel, it's great to see you."

"Would you _please_ stop calling me that?" Melody asked with a small smile, getting up to her feet, dusting herself off. "I love ya, kid, but you make me feel old when you call me that." She then grabbed some napkins from the shish kabob stand behind them and handed them to Bulk so he could start cleaning himself up. "So, why was I pelted with a pepper?"

"Uncle Bulk says he's going to teach me how become a Samurai Power Ranger," Spike replied, puffing out his chest. "He says he's got _lots _of experience with the past Rangers and he's been watching a lot of Samurai movies."

"_Samurai_…Power…Rangers?" Melody slowly asked, her eyes popping open. Spike nodded. "In this city?" Spike nodded even faster. "_Seriously_?"

"Oh yeah," Bulk replied, wiping at his shirt, a manic look appearing on his face. "They just showed up the other day. _Huge_ monster attack. It was all over the news. There were Mooger attacks everywhere before they showed up. And, I think they called the monster a Nighlok."

_You have _got _to be kidding me_, Melody thought, staring at Bulk, a blank look on her face. "We saw the smoke and heard explosions as we came into the city. We just thought they were zoning or something." _What are the odds, Mel? Tommy wasn't kidding. Once a Ranger, always a Ranger._ She blinked when Spike started waving his hand in her face. "Ok, that's not a good idea. You could really hurt yourself and…and you don't know the first thing about martial arts."

"Ah, and that's where _you_ come in, my dear, dweebie friend," Bulk said with a grin and Melody rolled her eyes at the name he called her. "You've been taking martial arts for years. Besides, if TJ and those other guys could become Power Rangers, then why can't us?"

"Uh…because, because, um," Melody stammered, trying to think of a good idea. Her mind was racing and she could barely think of a coherent sentence. She was still stuck on the fact that there were Power Rangers in the city that she had just moved to. _That can't be a coincidence_.

"Exactly," Bulk replied, clapping her hard on the back.

"This'll be so much fun," Spike said with a grin, before he started to loudly chew a piece of gum. "Wait until dad hears that I've become a samurai!" Spike starting letting out high pitched shrieks, karate chopping the air.

Suddenly, there was a loud crashing sound, shortly followed by the distinct sound of glass breaking. People started screaming, running past them. Melody looked around and saw a ball of fire shoot up into the air. _Clearly, God never wants me to leave my Ranger past behind_. "Guys, you go find a place to hide," she said, pushing Bulk and Spike away from her.

"W-wait, what about you?" Spike asked, grabbing her arm.

"I'm just going to go check to see what it is," Melody replied, prying his arm off of her. "To see what direction it's going in. I'll be there soon, don't worry." Before either Bulk and Spike could say anything else, she jumped onto her skateboard and took off towards the source of the explosion. _The things you get yourself into._

* * *

Mike stared intently at his Nintendo DS, thumbs flying over the buttons as he hunched over the game system in his hands.

Earlier, they had a little scare where , earlier, they couldn't find Emily. Kevin, Mia, and Mike went to look for her and found her in the city, practicing her sword techniques. They also found out that she wasn't actually supposed to be the Yellow Ranger. While they were shocked, they were also impressed that someone her age, who was years younger than the other Rangers, would take up something that important with such short notice.

Once they had returned to the house. Emily explained to everybody exactly when she started training and how skilled she was and while she seemed to impress everybody, Jayden was quick to remind her that she still had a long way to go and that it wouldn't be easy. After that little scare was over, Mike started to relax the best way he knew how: with video games.

He suddenly jumped, nearly dropping his game system, when a loud siren went off. "What is that?" he asked, quickly saving his game, closing the game, tossing it onto the seat he had just abandoned.

"That's the Gap Sensor," Mentor Ji explained as he hurried into the room. "It goes off the minute a Nighlok comes through from the Netherworld." He pressed down on the table and the surface rippled like water, before Ji pressed on it again and a map appeared.

"Dude!" Mike cried, kneeling by the table. "Freaking sweet!" A yellow dot radiated from a spot on the map.

"Where are they?" Mia asked, peering closer at the map. Ji reached out a hand and opened a smaller map, which was zoomed in a little more to give street names and some building names.

"That's amazing," Emily cried, her eyes wide.

"They're in City Hall," Ji replied, answering Mia's question. Hearing footsteps behind him, Ji turned to see Jayden stride into the room. Jayden quickly glanced at the map, before heading towards the front door.

"Samurai, we have a battle to fight," he said, picking up the pace before he was running out the front door.

Kevin gave Mentor a bewildered look, silently wondering what they had to do. He exchanged glances with Emily, Mia, and Mike who then also looked at Mentor. "Don't just stand there!" Ji cried, causing them to all jump. "Follow him." He watched as the Rangers hurried out of the house. "And good luck."

The Rangers quickly jumped into the Shiba House car, with Jayden at the wheel, driving to the location of the attack as fast as possible. Once they had gotten there, Jayden was already out of the car and halfway across the rocky, debris covered, concrete, heading towards the Moogers, morphing as he went.

"Jayden, wait!" Mia shouted after the Red Ranger, watching as he pulled out his Spin Sword, taking on the Moogers, aiming for the Nighlok, Scorpionic. She shook her head, turning towards Kevin as Mike and Emily ran around the car to join them. "He talks about being a team and then goes off on his own."

"It's probably just a hard adjustment for him," Kevin replied with a shake of his head. "He's been by himself for years.

"Well, we're not being a pretty good team just by sitting around and talking," Mike said as he pulled out his Samuraizer. Grinning, he shook it in Kevin's faces. "Let's go kick some Mooger ass." He then took off running, morphing in an instant.

"Right behind you," Emily shouted as she, Mia, and Kevin took off running after him. "Go Go Samurai!"

Jayden could hear his friends joining the battle around him, feeling slightly annoyed. He growled to himself, but continued to fight the Nighlok, trying to keep the stronger monster away from his team. He knew that working as a team was important, but at the same time, it was hard for him to fight, knowing he was putting his new teammates in danger.

They barely had the battle experience like he did and he didn't know how long they would last with the lack of training they had that day. But, he knew he had to fight, to show that he was a leader, and that he could actually lead a team.

As he fought, he noticed the Rangers' fighting styles instantly; Kevin was great with a sword, possibly rivaling himself. He knew that the Blue Ranger took his training seriously, and Jayden knew that he would follow whatever Jayden would tell him to do. Jayden wasn't surprised to see Kevin summon his Hydro Bow so quickly and accurately as well.

Mia was more of a graceful fighter, her body moving as if she was in some sort of dance as she cut down the Moogers that ran towards her. With her Sky Fan, she was as much of a threat as she was with a sword. She was skilled, but not on the same level as Kevin and Jayden, but she could get there..

Mike looked more like he was a street fighter, going all over the place as he fought. Despite this, he was accurate with his sword and fast. Jayden could tell from their little conflict that morning that he was not as serious as Kevin with his training, but the retained the information he was given and adapted it into his own personal fighting style. With his Forest Spear, he seemed to have some style to it, and every once in a while, went to help Emily.

Emily. She was obviously the least skilled of the Rangers, seeming to hesitate slightly before she attacked. Like Mike, she seemed to be bouncing all over the place besides having a strong and confident manner to her fighting. But, he had to give her props for being brave enough to join the fight anyway. With her Earth Slicer, she could knock down any Mooger that got in her way, but that was more of the weapon's natural attack, not a part of her skill.

Jayden took their lead and summoned his Fire Smasher, obliterating the Moogers around him. Hearing a loud crash, he turned and saw the Nighlok walking away from the destruction, laughing to himself. Jayden grit his teeth and hurried after the Nighlok, letting out a cry as he swung his Fire Smasher forward.

Scorpionic turned just in time to block Jayden's attack, sparks flying as his Fire Smasher scraped against the metal of Scorpionic's weapon. Jayden groaned in effort as he swung his heavy Fire Smasher around, trying to strike the Nighlok, surprised at how easily the Nighlok could dodge his attacks. Suddenly, he noticed Emily's Earth Slicer come spinning at his head. He quickly jumped out of the way, giving the Nighlok enough time to swing his large sword at Jayden, slashing him in an upwards line.

Jayden felt his body burn with pain seconds before he realized he was flying through the air, his Fire Smasher slipping out of his hands. His breath left him in a grunt of pain as he slammed into the building behind him. Head swimming he dropped to a pile of rubble below him gasping in pain. "Damn it, Emily," Jayden managed to choke out, his lips shaking.

"Oh no!" Emily shouted, raising her shaking her hands to her helmet. "Jayden!" She ran to his side, her vision swimming as she felt tears come to her eyes. "I'm _so _sorry. I hit you by mistake." She fell to her knees next to him and reached out shaky hands to help him up. She turned towards the Nighlok as it let out a harsh laugh.

"Bye, Bye, Rangers!" the Nighlok shouted before starting to spin the spiked portion of his head.

Mike, Kevin, and Mia ran towards Emily as she got to her feet, throwing her arms out to take the blow from Jayden. They all let out screams of pain as they were hit directly by the ferocious attack, instantly de-morphing, collapsing to the ground.

Jayden's heart hammered in his chest. _Why wasn't I hit? _he slowly sat up, glancing at the injured Rangers in front of him. He was directly in the line of fire, but he wasn't hurt at all. Mike, Mia, and Kevin groaned, trying to get to their feet. _This is what I wanted to avoid_. Jayden grit his teeth as his eyes landed on the Nighlok as it started to walk away.

"Get…back here," Jayden hissed, breathing heavily. Jayden gripped his arm, feeling a throbbing pain in his right arm. Given the force of that attack, however, he knew he couldn't fight the Nighlok alone. "Rangers, we must stand and be strong. Either we defeat the Nighlok or we will _be_ defeated."

"Understood," Kevin groaned, trying to get to his feet.

"Yeah, yeah," Mike nodded his head as he dropped to all fours. He waved a hand lazily in the air."I know."

"Mia?" Kevin asked when he heard the Pink Ranger groan in pain. "You ok?"

"I'm good," Mia replied with a nod and a thumbs up. "But, Emily—"

"Get up, Mia," Jayden said to the feel Ranger, moving to stand between the two Rangers. "If you can. If not, just stay where you are. " Mia hesitated but pushed herself up to her knees, slowly getting to her feet. Her face, much like Mike and Kevin's was splattered dust and dirt. "Emily."

"She'll get up on her own," Jayden said, looking over her shoulder at the fallen Ranger. "Don't help her." Kevin gave Jayden a look of disbelief. "She's a Ranger now. If she can't get up from this, if she relies on someone else, she'll _always_ rely on someone else."

"Aren't we supposed to, dude?" Mike asked, his eyes on Emily. "We're a team. You want us to be a team and then you go and do things on your own. That's messed up."

"There are times where you'll have to fight by yourself, even when the odds are stacked against you," Jayden said, turning to face Mike. "She knew what she was getting into when she accepted the Samuraizer."

"Dude…" Mike said with a shake of his head. "You're such an ass."

"I'm being a leader," Jayden replied in a firm tone. He heard a small groan from Emily as she started to move. "I'm doing what's best for the team. If she's seriously hurt, she stays here. That's final." To prove his point, he stepped away from the Rangers, picking up his fallen Spin Sword, stumbling away, after the Nighlok. "Mia, stay with her." He then added under his breath. "I will not put innocent lives in danger. No matter what."

He stopped in his tracks when a woman suddenly ran into the cluttered area. She looked around wildly, shouting, searching for something. "Hannah!"

"Mommy!"

And then Jayden saw her. A little girl with pigtails was sitting behind a large slab of concrete, hugging a teddy bear to her chest. Her face was covered with dirt, save for the tear streaks.. She stepped out of her hiding spot, revealing her tiny, dirty body, hurrying towards her mother. "No," Jayden shouted, running towards her. "Stop!"

He ran after the girl, putting a gloved hand on her shoulder. Lifting the girl into his arms, he hurried over towards the woman, handing her over. "Here you go, ma'am."

The woman stared past his shoulder and started panicking, sputtering out words, pointing with a shaky finger. Jayden turned his head and his eyes widened when he saw the Nighlok charging up another attack, the spike on his head, spinning around quickly. He grabbed onto the woman and her daughter, crouching low to the ground, squeezing his eyes shut.

But, the pain didn't come. He looked up, hearing a crash and saw the spiked tail stop in mid air, as if a force field. It continued to hit the air above him before the force of a strong attack, threw the Nighlok back, knocking him off balance. _What? _Jayden's mind reeled as he slowly got to his feet, pushing the woman and child away, motioning towards a clear way out. _What just happened? _

Mike let out a low whistle. "He may be hard, but that guy's got style," he commented with a shake of his head as he watched Jayden grab his sword and charge towards the Nighlok again.

"We have to help," Emily, who was now on her feet with the help of Mia, muttered, swaying on the spot, her eyes half lidded. "He's able to stay so focused on defeating evil. I only hope I'm up to the challenge." She gently pushed herself way from Mia, grabbing her Samuraizer. "Come on, guys."

"Em, are you sure?" Mia asked, reaching for Emily's shoulder. Emily pushed Mia's hand away and nodded. "Alright. We're right behind you." She looked out at the battlefield and at Jayden as he continued to fight the Nighlok. "And behind Jayden."

"Go go Samurai!" The four Rangers quickly morphed, hurrying over to Jayden, blocking the Nighlok's attack.

_Now that's some teamwork_, Jayden thought, allowing a smile to come to his face behind his helmet. "Time to let our Spin Swords do the talking," he commented, sliding his Red Lion Disc onto his Spin Sword. He then gave it a hard push. Mia, Kevin, Mike, and Emily followed his lead and did the same. "Spin Sword; Quintuple Slash."

The Rangers charged forward, striking the Nighlok one by one with their charged up Spin Swords. "Alright, that was awesome!" Kevin said with a grin. He then clapped Emily on the shoulder. "Way to pull through, Em."

"Hold on, guys," Jayden said, turning around to watch the Nighlok start to grow bigger. "Here comes the Mega Monster." Jayden rested his Spin Sword on his shoulder and looked over at Emily. "You ready for another round?"

"Definitely," Emily replied with a nod and a thumbs up. "I'll never give up until all of the Nighloks have been destroyed."

"That's what I like to hear," Jayden replied, grinning behind his helmet.

With the team working together, to create the Samurai Megazord for the first time, the Nighlok was defeated. Unfortunately, Kevin was so excited about making the Megazord that he tried to initiate the sequence, ending up in a Foldginzord totem pole, leaving Jayden out. But then Jayden took over, and they were successful in creating the Megazord the right way and defeating the Nighlok as a team.

Once the battle was over, the Rangers demorphed, but stayed in the battle area. Jayden slowly looked around the pile of debris and let out a sigh. _It's only going to get worse from here. _He turned to face the other Rangers as they walked over talking animatedly with each other. "See what we can do when we work as a team?" he asked, meeting them halfway. "We did great." He then turned and clapped Mike on the shoulder. "Not bad for someone who thinks I'm an ass."

"Sorry about that, man," Mike replied, scratching the back of his head. "I understand now what you mean. Perfect practice makes perfect execution, right?"

"Right," Jayden replied.

"I'm sorry guys," Emily commented, rubbing her arm. "I nearly messed it up for all of us. Jayden—"

"You did great, Em," Jayden replied, with a hint of a smile. "For someone who's had little Samurai training, you gave it all you got and that's all I ask for." He gave a short laugh. "You really know how to use that Earth Slicer. If I didn't move out of the way, I'm sure you would've knocked my head off."

Emily gave a small giggle. "You would've moved anyway," she replied. She looked over at Mia when the older girl placed a hand on her shoulder.

"Your big sister would be proud of you," Mia replied before sliding her arm around her shoulders, giving her a one armed hug. "I know she would; because I am."

"So am I," Kevin replied, reaching out muss her hair. "You'll fit in just fine, Em. Keep working hard and there's nothing we can't do."

"Let's head home," Jayden suggested, sliding his hands into his jeans pockets. As the Rangers left the rocky clearing, a figure standing on an overpass watched them, head tilted to the side.

"Not bad," Melody commented, slowly nodding. "Not bad at all." She stepped onto her skateboard and slowly rolled away. "They've got a long way to go, though."

* * *

"You're not serious!"

Melody rolled her eyes at the image of Rocky DeSantos that sat on her computer screen as she Skyped him. "Dead serious, Rocko. There called the Samurai Power Rangers."

"Huh," Rocky commented, scratching at his chin. "What are the odds that the city you move to has Power Rangers in it?"

"It's a curse, I'm telling ya," Melody commented, leaning her head back against her bedroom wall.

She made a face as water dripped from her hair and down her back. After helping Spike settle in at Bulk's place, Melody went to the new location of her dad's restaurant with their surf gear, to check the place out. Then they all spent the day surfing at the rest of the afternoon at beach. Afterwards, Melody had returned to her home and took a quick shower in enough time to see that she was getting a video chat invite on Skype from Rocky.

"My brothers are convinced that it's a sign. That I'm not done being a Ranger yet."

"Makes sense to me," Rocky replied with a shrug, leaning back in the chair he was sitting in. "Plus, you _did_ help those guys out in the fight today from what you've told me." He gave a grin. "Just can't stay away from the power, can ya?"

"Have you regretted passing your powers onto Justin?" Melody asked, sliding ear buds into her ears, plugging the other end into her computer.

"A few times, when I really had the time to think about it," Rocky admitted after a moment of silence, letting out a sigh, blowing his bangs out of his face. "You know how it feels to have your powers, feeling like you can do anything, and then suddenly be normal again. I felt exhausted for a while, and whenever I saw an attack on the news, it did get my adrenaline pumping, wishing I could help out. But—"

"You can't help an injury," Melody agreed. "How is your back by the way?"

"It's good," Rocky replied with a nod. "I get ghost pains every now and then, or at least that's what my chiropractor calls them." He suddenly frowned. "I'm glad we won the tournament and everything, but if I hadn't been so _stupid_ and tried to show off, I wouldn't have hurt my back."

"It was just an accident, Rocko," Melody replied with a shake of her head. "That's all."

"Yeah," Rocky agreed with a nod. "So, what if, somehow, you _were _to become a Ranger again. Would you do it?"

"I've seen Adam with his Power Coin the first time, Rocky," Melody said giving him an 'Are-you-crazy-?' look. "I don't even know how it got fixed for him to use again, but I'm not putting myself in that kind of danger."

"You still have your Zeonizers and Turbo Morphers, stupid," Rocky replied, giving her a 'duh' face. Melody stuck her tongue out at him in reply. "I'm just saying, don't be surprised if somehow it happens. And don't get yourself killed. I know how reckless you can be."

"Wouldn't dream of it," Melody replied, waving her hand in the air. "I'm actually surprised Bulk and Spike didn't put two and two together with my near freak out when they told me about them."

"Well, it _is _Bulk," Rocky chuckled in reply before glancing at the bottom right hand of his screen. "Hey, I gotta get going; I have a business call coming in soon. Glad to see you moved safely. Say 'hi' to your brothers and I'm keeping your dad in my prayers."

"Thanks, Rock," Melody replied with a smile. "Keep up the great work with your gym. See ya." Melody waved before ending the call.

She stared at the desktop to her computer for a moment before glancing across her room, at the wooden box she had lying on her desk. She set her computer aside and crossed the room, taking the lid off the box and staring down at her morphers. She grabbed her communicator and slipped it onto her wrist, smiling a little sadly at it.

…

..

.

"See?" Melody said with a grin as she finished her story. "Told you I was around the whole time." She picked up the dice that sat in the middle of the board and rolled it, bringing up and eight. She moved her peg eight spaces and sighed. "Who owns St. James Place?"

"I do," Emily cried, throwing her hand into the air. "That'll be $150 please." Melody counted her Monopoly money and handed it over to the grinning girl.

"I'm just kinda surprised with what you guys went through to start the team," Melody added.

"So, why didn't you come and say who you were?" She elbowed Mike in the side. "Mike would've freaked out for sure."

"I would not!" Mike said with a roll of his eyes, elbowing her back. Kevin scoffed, looking at him. "Ok, so maybe I did when we first met her…a little."

"No worries, Mike," Melody replied with a wave of her hand. "Like I said, I was trying to put my Ranger past behind me. I felt like my time was up a while ago. Obviously, I was wrong." She used her shoulder to brush her hair out of her face before looking over at Jayden. "Why didn't you come to 'collect me' earlier?"

"It wasn't anything we couldn't handle by ourselves Jayden replied as he sorted his colored money. "When Mike ran off, I really wasn't sure he was coming back and we needed the extra help. Ji explained everything to me; I figured then was the time to ask you to join."

"We wouldn't have gotten as far as we have without you around, Mel," Mia said with a smile, taking the dice from her to take her turn. "Thanks a lot."

"Hey," Kevin said in a joking tone. "We did a good job before she got here. Don't forget that." He got a pillow to the face in reply, and placed it in his lap, resting his elbows on it. "But, it's great to have you here."

Melody then turned to Jayden, who had been silent the whole time. "So, I don't get a compliment from you?" she asked, batting her eyelashes.

He arched an eyebrow at her. "You will if you never do that again," he replied with a smirk. "I honestly don't think this house would be as crazy as it is without you here."

"Coming from Jayden, that's a compliment," Antonio commented as he walked into the living room with a bowl of popcorn. He shoved a handful in his mouth and took the dice from Kevin, rolling a 12. He moved his piece across the board as he chewed, and landed on Boardwalk. "Oh yeah!" he shouted, spraying the board with mashed up bits of popcorn. "I'm buying Boardwalk! That's golden, baby!" Everybody groaned as he handed over the cash to buy the property.

* * *

**Kind of a lame ending, but I couldn't really decide whether I was just going to end it, or have the whole thing be like them telling the story of how they became a team. And, I was stuck between Kimberly, Rocky, or Adam being the one Melody Skyped, and decided after randomly picking.**

**Hope you guys likes this fic. Oh, and I decided to skip the Halloween one-shot as those are kinda hard to write anyway. So, Christmas Together will be the next one shot that's posted. One of the Guys will be updated soon, Thursday at the earliest.**

**~MysticMelody101~**


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